Chapter Ninety-One: The Thing I Hate Most in This Life Is Multiple-Choice Questions

With a crack like thunder, the god of thunder strode in at last, Mjolnir raised high in his hand.

Both sides broke off at the same instant.

At the sight of Thor, one hand on a wine flask and the other on his hammer, everyone’s expression turned strange.

“This hardly counts as drunk driving, folks.”

He tucked the flask into his coat and looked to Rogers. “Hey. You all right?”

Rogers looked a little battered. After being taken down hard by Zabazara’s webbing, his voice came out somewhat low. Though he could trade blows with anyone with that shield of his, Zabazara had not given him the chance. He had been beaten up rather badly.

Three arms against one was simply impossible to lose.

If she had not held back a little for the sake of the plan to come, Rogers would already have been tossed over the edge into a free fall.

“I’m sorry, Thor.”

Rogers steadied his breathing with the shield in hand. “I think we still have a great many things to do.”

The anomaly aboard the carrier, and the fact that Hydra seemed to be everywhere around him, had led Rogers to confirm certain things.

But there was still one point he could not be certain of: whether Hill was also Hydra. Now that Thor had arrived, whether he chose to probe further or simply cleanse the carrier in one sweep, he had a new plan.

He had also begun to notice other suspicious details. Why was “Natasha” here? What was Hill doing?

Rogers felt as though he had touched the edge of a vast mystery.

“While I’m here, no one will ruin our plan.”

Zabazara stood there with the shield she had taken from Rogers, looking at Rogers and Thor, and the others from the Defenders behind them.

“She says they have a new plan.”

Thor interjected at the worst possible moment. Rogers’ mouth twitched, words lingering unspoken.

Without confirming Hill’s identity, he was wary.

“Here. A gift for you.”

Zabazara waved a hand. The disguised Hill, bound as though captured, was dragged out by Hydra agents.

If Rogers had been a little more cautious, he would have noticed the deep terror hidden in the eyes of those Hydra agents.

They were probably not seeing tomorrow’s sun.

To be honest, they wanted nothing to do with a task that meant taking the blame for offending their superior.

Even if it had been Hill’s own request.

“You little—” the curse burst from Rogers as he took a step back.

The Hill being dragged along looked very battered indeed, as though she had been subjected to severe torture.

Rogers could not make sense of it.

How could someone as sharp as Hill be brought to this?

“I have a suggestion, handsome men—a very delicate and rather special idea. Let’s make this a choice.”

Zabazara suddenly raised her hand. The webbing in her grip wrapped around Hill on the ground. “I’ll throw her from here, and we can test each other’s speed to see who catches her first on the way down.”

“Though my hammer is fast, I don’t like that idea. I swore that aside from Jane I wouldn’t hold any other woman in my arms.” Thor thought for a moment, then added, “Of course, except my mother...”

“Natasha, I don’t know why you’ve become this way, but I don’t like that idea either.”

“Objection overruled.”

Zabazara abruptly spread both hands wide. The spider silk in her grip instantly fanned into a net, covering the area where Rogers stood, while the many arachnid limbs behind her unfolded as well.

“Oh, she’s really cool.”

Jessica and the others behind Rogers stared in amazement.

“Why do I feel like she’s the same as that Spider-Man on the streets of New York?”

Jessica exclaimed in admiration.

“Spiders are terrifying!”

The honest Luke Cage spoke with sharp candor.

“You are not allowed to insult my idol!”

Jessica admired Spider-Man greatly, and Luke Cage’s words displeased her.

“Baby, you’re scolding me for a stranger?”

Luke Cage felt, for no particular reason, a faint sense of betrayal.

“I actually think you should carry a shield too. Then when you don’t have one, it won’t be awkward.”

Just as Rogers was about to speak, Thor clapped him on the shoulder and charged forward.

Hissing currents crackled like arrows, striking the shield in Zabazara’s hand in a barrage that disregarded all the rules of physics. At the same time, the spider limbs behind her stabbed out at high speed, while her other two arms sprayed webbing to seal off Thor’s room to evade.

With a twist in midair, the shield Zabazara had hurled spun back and was caught by Rogers. With the shield in hand, Rogers instantly seemed to come alive again, as though the spirit of gymnastics had awakened in him. He blocked and dodged the web and silk rushing at him again and again, weaving left and right as he closed in on Hill.

The three side characters of the Defenders watched the spectacle with delight, gorging themselves on the excitement. The Captain America before and after were so vastly different, so agile, that they fell into stunned silence—until the Hydra agents guarding Hill opened fire on Rogers.

Do not come any closer!

The agents guarding Hill performed superbly, their faces full of panic, their movements frantic, yet the hands on their guns remained remarkably steady as they painted Rogers’ body with bullets.

The submachine guns rattled as rounds sprayed out, constantly striking the shield that seemed to be drawing all the hatred in the world, ringing and clanging. Charging ahead with the shield raised, Rogers suddenly leaped into the air, pressed the battle shield before him, and slammed hard into the Hydra agents firing at him.

Clang...

Another deafening crash.

A shockwave burst through the passage like a storm of concussion, spreading outward from the shield and blasting the Defenders and the onlooking agents clear off their feet, hurling them hard against the walls.

The one stopping Rogers’ shield with a single punch was another Zabazara.

This was the effect of Hill’s skill.

Sleeve Hidden Trump Card: one trump card, two trump cards, three trump cards... and at the end, the ace up the sleeve. This was her hidden reserve. Her intelligence dropped in love, but doubled in palace intrigue. She could freely copy a target to fight for her, with energy consumption no greater than her own level.

No one had expected this turn of events.

“Can your Spider-Man do clones? He definitely isn’t this strong.”

Luke Cage instantly found his chance to strike back.

“Oh, you tactless idiot, let’s break up, Luke.”

Jessica said.

“Oh, baby, why? I love you, and for your sake the traffic bureau’s fines I owe are already booked a year in advance.”

“Because you’re not Spider-Man. I like insects. We have different tastes, so we can’t be happy together.”

Rogers: “I really do still prefer the regular army.”

Thor: “?”

Zabazara: “Amazing...”

Hill: “Can you speed up the scene? I’m about to lose my cover.”

“Oh, sorry. You fought well, but it looks like I’m still a little stronger.”

Her face slightly pale from the heavy expenditure, Zabazara glanced at the Hill pretending to be dead, drunkenly curled her lip, then lifted her hand and brought thumb and forefinger together as she said to Rogers, “Now, please accept the surprise I’ve prepared for you.”

Within the pale blue mist, Zabazara’s figure slowly faded away, and then the crowd was greeted by a piercing scream.

“Let’s see how you save her?”

The two Zabazaras erupted at once, and while one smashed Rogers backward, the other hurled Hill, bound in threads, off the carrier.

“Thor!”

The instant Rogers reached the outer hull, the spider silk wrapping Hill shattered, and that high scream left everyone dizzy and deafened.

“Heimdall, close your eyes. And do not tell Jane about this.”

Swinging Mjolnir, Thor shot out like lightning.